If you want variety, then there is no shortage of sweepstakes casinos like MegaBonanza. However, as one of the top brands in the social gaming space, it is hard to find something on the same level in terms of quality.
Still, we spotted a few gems after testing as many sweepstakes platforms as we could. On this page, we will talk about the features of these sites and how they match or beat what MegaBonanza provides. We will also share some of the best tips for choosing similar sites, but first we need to talk about what MegaBonanza does right.
There’s hardly a forum where social gaming is being discussed without one or two mentions of MegaBonanza. That didn’t happen by accident; many people have just been privileged to watch it grow from its first launch with just a few hundred games to the giant with a library of 1000+ titles. There are slots from top providers and live dealer games just incase you fancy some classics. Each time we have played on desktop or opted for mobile, there’s been no lag or crash. Still, the smooth experience and game range were not enough to stop us from seeking alternatives and here’s why:
We settled on three MegaBonanza alternatives because we wanted each one to fill a noticeable gap. While we begin with the welcome offer you can expect when you sign up, we’ve provided even more details on why you should choose each one below:
| MegaBonanza vs alternatives | Welcome offer |
|---|---|
| Mega Bonanza | 7500 Gold Coins and 2.5 Sweeps Coins |
| BigPirate | 10,000 Gold Coins, 2 Diamonds, and 2 Rum Coins |
| Thrillzz | 3000 Thrillzz Coins and 2 Thrillzz Sweeps |
| Cider Casino | 20,000 Gold Coins and 0.3 Sweeps Coins |
If you are looking for a social casinos like SweepJungle or MegaBonanza with a visible difference, then BigPirate is the best example. You get three virtual currencies as opposed to two. So there’s the standard Gold Coin, there are Diamonds which function as the platform’s equivalent to Sweeps Coins, and Rum Coins which you can use in the rewards shop. While MegaBonanza focuses only on the typical casino-style games that you already expect, BigPirate lets you play a side game where you build a whole city, fight off enemies and just enjoy a video-game-style experience. Even the welcome offer is more generous and code-free, with lots of interesting follow-up promotions right after. 
BigPirate Pros and Cons–T&Cs apply, 18+
During our BigPirate assessment, we were more focused on the games and bonuses, paying no mind to the possibility of a social sportsbook integration. However, Thrillzz is an all-in-one platform where you get a fair dose of social sportsbook and casino-style fun. The best part is that you can separate the action by downloading the app specifically for sports and sticking with the website for games. The welcome bonus here is much less than what MegaBonanza offers at 3000 Thrillzz Coins and 2 Thrillzz Sweeps. However, after testing apps, we found this one to be the most accommodating for all gaming preferences. 
Thrillzz Pros and Cons–T&Cs apply, 18+
We found Cider while looking for EpicSweeps sister casinos and couldn’t get past the size of bonuses they have. Newly registered players can claim a total of 20,000 Gold Coins and 0.3 Sweeps Coins, then a progressive daily log in bonus that delivers free SC and GC follows. With these, you can play over 500 casino-style games from their still-growing library. We ran into a little issue while trying to make our first purchase and had to contact their support team via live chat. The response time of only a few seconds was impeccable and we had our issue resolved within a minute. Definitely worth checking out if you want an alternative that delivers a smoother user experience. 
Cider Casino Pros and Cons Claim BonusT&Cs apply, 18+
We reviewed multiple platforms over a 6 months period just to find the best alternatives after our MegaBonanza review. In order to make our selections, we needed to check very specific details. We had a checklist of 12 items split into high-priority and passable factors. For the sake of making your own comparison easier, here are the top 6 priority sections we looked at:
The main design of social gaming platforms is to provide casino-style games for free. This is why we scrutinize the quality of their collection with the same seriousness that we apply to standard casino brands. We look at the number of games they have, ensuring that the collection is at least 500 options strong to provide enough engagement over one month at least. Then, we check where these games come from, considering many brands stock clones and remakes. Where we don’t find studios that we know, we immediately drop priority for such gaming platforms until we confirm the reputation of these studios. If all looks good, we then go ahead to test the sweepstakes site’s game fairness itself. We check to see if game results feel suspicious and if they regularly have their RNGs tested.
When you visit a website for the first time, you should be able to do the most basic actions without help. For instance, if you wanted to register, you shouldn’t have to tap on a hamburger menu to reveal the registration button. Same with when you want to check your virtual currency balance or find specific games by title. The website design of any social casino we recommend has to be beginner-friendly. That way, even if you had never visited a social gaming platform before, you should be able to get started in an average of 4 minutes. When you switch from desktop to mobile, the quality of the interface, icon size, and placements should adjust to match your new screen size. This level of usability is one of the things we liked most about MegaBonanza so we couldn’t settle for sites that fell short in any way.
If there are no free virtual currencies, you can’t play for free on any sweepstakes casino. Which means we only support brands that offer promotions from the point of account creation till any day you choose to quit. The number of promotions and the quality are two different things and we treat them as such. If the promotions we find are large in size but all require purchases, then there is absolutely no point in classifying such a platform as a sweepstakes casino. To be certain, we want to see a sign up bonus, a daily log in offer, a mail-in request and optionally a referral program on each platform. Where we find even more deals, we are excited to recommend them.
Every player has a preference for gaming devices; while some can play comfortably on desktop or mobile, some choose one or the other. That is why we like brands that either have mobile applications or a website that can adjust nicely to any device screen. Where there is no app, we take time to test the site on four types of mobile devices. These are an iPhone, a tablet, a budget Android device with a tiny screen and a standard Android device with a wider screen. We also test across popular browsers like Chrome and Safari and then switch to options like Firefox to see if the site opens on all of them. The brands here all passed every part of our tests and we were most impressed with how they ran over slightly unstable wifi.
We agree that the US had two groups of states: those that welcomed sweepstakes gaming and those that were indifferent. This distinction is important because where a brand only excludes locations that locally do not agree with social gaming, we are comfortable. It means you can ideally play games from a good number of locations in the country. However, we have seen different sweepstakes brands that only work in about a dozen states. For us, the minimum number of states where you should be able to access social gaming is 30. That covers more than half of the country already.
Safety is an important part of being online in general. For sweepstakes gaming, there is no regulator at the moment that can do these checks and award a seal of approval. That means we have to do the checks ourselves by looking at things like the overall reputation of the brand, especially if it has been around for at least 12 months. Then, we look into aspects like data security via SSL-encryption and other protocols. If those look good, we check the privacy policy page just to confirm that there is a clear plan on what happens to your information on the platform.
When you decide on one of the sites like MegaBonanza on this page, you need to weigh the pros and cons before you create an account. These are some of those we identified already:
When you register with a site like MegaBonanza, you are going to experience different bonuses, games, and features. What matters is deciding if they are better than what you had at MegaBonanza itself. Where we are sure that the brands are much better in specific ways, we highlight those areas, as you can see above. However, we took time to do the search, so do well to read through the things that we considered. Once you have decided on one of the sites, you can create an account in a few seconds. They all have special sign up bonuses that you get right away without needing to apply a code. Click on any of the banners now to set up your account and start playing for free.
The best sites like MegaBonanza are Thrillzz, BigPirates and Cider Casino. All three platforms are similar to MegaBonanza in how the sweepstakes model works. They also provide a wide range of promotions, impressive game collection and smooth mobile usability.
The sites like MegaBonanza with the best application is Thrillzz. However, the app is designed for its mobile social sportsbook. All other platforms have impressive mobile web support.
Yes, all the apps like MegaBonanza that we have shared here have a welcome bonus that you can claim without needing to apply a bonus code. You are only required to set up an account and start playing casino-style games for free.
BigPirate has three virtual currencies, each available for free and useful within the platform. You will also find an impressive side game where you get to build your own city while on the platform.
